Cyber Resilience

CVE-2015-2425

Memory Safety in Microsoft Internet Explorer 11

CISA KEVActive ExploitationEUVD ExploitedMemory Safety
Published
14 July 2015
Modified
22 April 2026
KEV Added
25 May 2022
Patch / advisory
CVSS Score v3.1 8.8
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
EPSS Score 0.45 99th percentile
Risk Priority 90 floored blend · peak EPSS

Summary

CVE-2015-2425 is a high-severity Out-of-bounds Write (CWE-787) vulnerability in Microsoft Internet Explorer. Its CVSS base score is 8.8 (High).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Exploitation for Privilege Escalation (T1068); ranked in the top 1% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; CISA has added it to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog.

Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary

Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.

Microsoft Internet Explorer 11 contains a memory corruption vulnerability tracked as CVE-2015-2425 and assigned CWE-787. The flaw permits out-of-bounds writes when the browser processes specially crafted web content, leading to arbitrary code execution or denial of service. It is distinct from the related issues CVE-2015-2383 and CVE-2015-2384 and carries a CVSS 3.1 base score of 8.8 reflecting network attack vector, low complexity, and high impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability.

An unauthenticated remote attacker can exploit the issue by convincing a user to visit a malicious website under the attacker's control. Successful exploitation grants the ability to execute arbitrary code in the context of the current user or to crash the browser process.

Microsoft addressed the vulnerability in security bulletin MS15-065, which supplies patches for affected builds of Internet Explorer 11. The bulletin and corresponding SecurityTracker entries recommend applying the updates as the primary mitigation; no additional configuration changes are specified in the references.

The vulnerability appears in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog, indicating confirmed real-world exploitation activity.

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

Microsoft Internet Explorer 11 allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause a denial of service (memory corruption) via a crafted web site, aka "Internet Explorer Memory Corruption Vulnerability," a different vulnerability than CVE-2015-2383 and CVE-2015-2384.

CWE(s)
KEV Date Added
25 May 2022

Related Threats

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques

T1068 Exploitation for Privilege Escalation Privilege Escalation
Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities in an attempt to elevate privileges.
T1190 Exploit Public-Facing Application Initial Access
Adversaries may attempt to exploit a weakness in an Internet-facing host or system to initially access a network.
T1203 Exploitation for Client Execution Execution
Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities in client applications to execute code.
T1210 Exploitation of Remote Services Lateral Movement
Adversaries may exploit remote services to gain unauthorized access to internal systems once inside of a network.
T1211 Exploitation for Stealth Stealth
Adversaries may exploit vulnerabilities to evade detection by hiding activity, suppressing logging, or operating within trusted or unmonitored components.
T1212 Exploitation for Credential Access Credential Access
Adversaries may exploit software vulnerabilities in an attempt to collect credentials.
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2015-2419Same product: Microsoft Internet Explorerboth on KEV
CVE-2015-2502Same product: Microsoft Internet Explorerboth on KEV
CVE-2017-0149Same product: Microsoft Internet Explorerboth on KEV
CVE-2017-0222Same product: Microsoft Internet Explorerboth on KEV
CVE-2016-0189Same product: Microsoft Internet Explorerboth on KEV
CVE-2018-8373Same product: Microsoft Internet Explorerboth on KEV
CVE-2015-2387Same product: Microsoft Windows 7both on KEV
CVE-2013-3918Same product: Microsoft Windows 7both on KEV
CVE-2018-8174Same product: Microsoft Windows 7both on KEV
CVE-2018-8653Same product: Microsoft Internet Explorerboth on KEV

Affected Assets

microsoft
internet explorer
11

Mitigating Controls

Likely Mitigating Controls AI

Per-CVE control mapping for this CVE has not run yet; the list below is derived from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry.

addresses: CWE-787

Out-of-bounds writes that corrupt control flow or inject shellcode are rendered non-executable by the same memory protections.

Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

PR.PS-06 mostly match
prevents

Secure-development practices (static analysis, bounds checking, code review) are the primary means of preventing out-of-bounds writes.

ID.RA-01 partial match
prevents

Vulnerability scanning and recording can discover out-of-bounds write flaws so they can be remediated.

PR.PS-02 partial match
prevents

Patching or replacing vulnerable software directly eliminates known instances of this coding weakness.

Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

finds

Security testing in development and acceptance can detect and prevent out-of-bounds write defects.

prevents

Secure development life cycle mandates practices that prevent out-of-bounds writes.

prevents

Application security requirements can specify bounds-checking and safe memory handling.

prevents

Secure architecture and engineering principles reduce the likelihood of buffer overflows.

prevents

Secure coding directly addresses out-of-bounds writes through language choice and coding standards.

prevents

Change management can enforce review gates that catch unsafe memory operations before deployment.

References